faq
what is this?
A center for ants!? No, uh. A non-judgemental place for a small group of people to write shippy bullshit and panfandom nonsense together. We would classify the game as slice of life jamjar with exploration and psychological horror elements. Events are usually focused on cross-canon CR building and temporary status effects.
The setting itself is called the Clock Box. It's a sentient nexus that wants you to kiss. Further details on it are here.
If you'd like to check out what it all looks like in action, the comms are syndicated here.
how do i join?
Currently, you'll need to get a current player to the invitations page with your name so we know you have been invited. Please don't put pressure on current players by hassling them for an invite, though certainly express your interest!
AS OF OCTOBER 2016 WE ALSO HAVE A MOD INVITE SYSTEM: Players who accumulate 10 comments on the Test Drive Meme may PM the mods with proofs to receive an invitation to the game. Simply send your name and your links to the relevant threads.
Then you're free to reserve and apply as usual.
who can i app?
We require all canons to have been published by a reputable (non-vanity) publisher in one form or another, that has been available in English for at least one week. All players must have watched/read/played their canon.
We require all characters to stand alone as well-rounded human beings without relying on excessive headcanon or guesswork.
While we allow players to app two characters from the same canon, we will be very reluctant to accept an app for a character who canonically has several points of overlapping significant CR with a character you already play (unless you declare intent to drop one to app the other). This will also depend strongly on the player's activity history, particularly cross-canon.
In order to make sure no one canon dominates the game, we currently have a cap of 20 characters from the same franchise. Casts at or nearing this cap will be listed on the application page.
We do accept:
• CRAU, that is, characters apping in with history from a previous game, including characters AUed into the game setting.
• Canon AU, such as the alternate version of Spock created by the Star Trek reboot, or the Tony Stark from the comics in addition to the MCU version, or both Sherlock and Elementary versions of a character, etc. However we advise applicants considering an AU version of a character already in the game discuss it with the player in advance.
• Original Characters! We have a page with more information on OCs and their standards and requirements here.
We do not accept:
• Player-created AU versions such as Rule 63s or using fan fiction as canon.
• Multiples of a character from the same canon. While having both a Clint Barton from MCU and 616 would be acceptable, having two MCU Clints, one a CRAU, would not be.
• Characters whose canon is a religious text (Jesus Christ from Saint Young Men is appable, Jesus Christ from the King James Bible is not.)
• Characters whose sole canon is real world history or myth (Things like Arthur from BBC's Merlin or Iskandier from Fate/ is fine.)
• Celebrities or other real life people.
Please ask if you're unsure!
what about very minor canon characters?
Any canon character that requires excessive extrapolation/headcanon to determine their personality and history will not be accepted.
Because the ratio of 'screen time' to canon information is highly subjective, we will need to determine the viability of a minor character on a case by case basis. As a generalization, if the character you're interested in needs 50% or more of their information devised by you (as opposed to explicitly being stated or shown in canon) in order to seem like a three-dimensional character, you may expect the mods to be critical of your application.
If you have any questions or doubts about how your intended character would qualify, please PM the mods. We are happy to help!
where do i post?
Posts for character interacting in the game setting go in the main community,
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
clockbox, using this format. Characters using the devices can post to the social network app,
lockbox, and put an IC inbox in their journal for one-on-one calls, texts and video functionality.All comments to these two main comms or on IC inboxes that use the Clock Box html will count for AC.
what's ac like?
Formal AC is just a monthly check-in, failing to reply with a regular heads-up that you still want to play your character will get you swept.
There is no initial penalty for accidentally idling out but if it is consistent we may refuse your reapplication, so use the drop post when possible! Three+ months of absence in the game through hiatus, idles, lack of OOC participation and no activity in their character's community tags will result in us giving a player a monthly activity requirement to stay in the game.
To encourage gameplay, however, posts and comments can be tallied up and handed in at check-in times, and turned into points. These can be spent on rewards at the requests page at any time. Rewards include IC advantages such as items from home or temporary powers, as well as OOC advantages such as a role in a mod-run plot or game invites, and we're always open to suggestions.
why is my character here?
A sentient entity of infinite cosmic power has collected them. The Clock collects abandoned places and facsimiles of other worlds and within these spaces it will grant everything your characters' hearts desire.
Check the setting page ways for more information on the Clock, and the ways your character might have arrived in the game.
drops, hiatus, or canon updates?
Your character can choose to go home if they're able to find their way back to the right door, so dropped characters are considered to have returned to their worlds (or maybe wandered off into someone else's).
This mechanic can be used to canon-update, and can also be used to explain re-applications. Being temporarily lost could also be a good way to hiatus if you'd rather not autopilot. If you can't make a check-in, or you just want a place to let people know you can't get to tags, use the drops/hiatus page to take a hiatus.
Alternatively, a drop could mean this version of your character has died. Death is permanent. A dead character cannot be reapped with memories of the Clock.
We don't require any notification for a canon update, or for your character to have been gone a specific length of time, but we do ask that if their powers change significantly away from what they were when you apped, and you think they may now violate the power limits, you come and talk to us about it.
my character has no desires, terrible desires, or i don't want the setting to shift to their desires, is that okay?
That's fine, as long as you're comfortable with it — sometimes it's fun to inconvenience your characters.
If it's inconveniencing you, the player, however, feel free to take advantage of the fact that the Clock Box has a bit of a mind of its own. It may try to "help" characters regardless of what they want. It's also chaotic and may be incorrect or imperfect in the way it tries to give characters what they crave.
The Clock automatically makes sure that any being it takes into itself is incapable of destroying it (or ruining its fun), so as specified on the application page, some abilities may have to be nerfed, and some desires won't be answered. Powers will not be able to break, teleport or phase through the walls of each location, and area effects (such as noise, explosions, vibrations, weather) will be limited to the boundaries of the location. We often work with our players before acceptance to help revise or adjust powers, so don't worry if you're not sure.
The Clock is sentient, so if your character has telepathy, technopathy, or any other similar sensitivities you may want to come and talk to us for more information.
The Clock will never grant powers that wouldn't have been naturally accepted into the game.
It won't always be guaranteed to take characters where they want to go (this is so the mechanic of being lost and apart from everyone else is possible) but thinking about a location or person might sometimes work.
It won't create brand new areas for them (that is, if the character imagines a palace, they will not immediately find that palace sprung forth from their imagination) but it may lead them to similar areas. Most of the Clock locations are places that already exist. If you want to purchase a location from canon that is available as an activity reward.
It can't create life or bring people back from the dead. There are no NPCs living in its bounds that the player characters know of. Plenty of places show signs of previous habitation. It does seem to have a fair amount of non-sentient life within its bounds, though, from bees to trees to bacteria to elephant colonies.
It won't bring people from home just because the character wants to see them (however it might bring pets, which can be bought on the activity rewards page.)
It is unable to injure or kill its inhabitants. It may provide the knife your character wants to fight with, but it won't stab their opponent for them.
It is unable to forcibly control its inhabitants, so it can't force people to fall in love or do something they wouldn't normally.
There's an item request page for a reason, so feel free to drop us a line if you're unsure. And there are plenty of other characters in the game who can influence the surroundings for you, why not hit them up?
how big are locations? what defines an "area"?
All areas are one space, though we'll allow an occasional additional attachment or two (bathrooms, closets, a hidden passage, a laboratory viewing room, a cinema projector room, a bar's back room, etc.) Mostly, though, if there's a door it's going to lead to a new area in the clock, which is why the rooms found in houses tend to be found individually rather than clustered together like a house would normally be.
Within that limitation, an "area" is anything; indoors, outdoors, a sitting room, a beach, a bar, a park, a church, an industrial kitchen, a screaming void, an underwater city. It can be infinitely expansive and require your character to look for an unexpected door, or it can be a closet.
The Clock will do its best to protect fragile inhabitant bodies: open a door to Mars, and you might find yourself in a spacesuit, or a door filled with a shimmering water surface might have scuba gear next to it.
Anything that happens within an area is limited to that area. If the air is poison, for instance, the gas will not spread out the open doorway. An underwater city will not spill water through the doorway. Superpowers such as earthquakes or explosions will be contained in one area, and the same goes for sound.
Unless it is specified otherwise, an area can be assumed to obey the laws of physics and changes made to an area will remain in place whether or not anyone is in it. This includes leaving items behind, destroying or damaging parts of the area, etc. If you make major changes that others would notice it might be wise to post to the OOC community and/or reply to the location comment on the Settings page with details.
what kind of plot is there?
For now, the plot will primarily revolve around trope-based scenarios and slice of life, as well as any plot generated specifically by the players.
While there is not really an overarching mod plot, the origin and purpose of the Clock itself is a solvable mystery. Mod-run events tend to focus on CR building, using player match-ups. There are also seasonal events for mingling, and a monthly "intro log".
If you have an idea for a plot but couldn't run it using your characters, drop us a line here on this page. We are willing to allow active players to temporarily bring in NPCs for the duration of running a plot (such as a villain for PCs to kill or someone with love potion superpowers.)
Also give a yell if you need direction of any kind!
where does my character live?
Anywhere you want!
From the beds of an abandoned hospital to the branches of a tall tree, characters are welcome to use whatever is around them in order to live. We love to see innovation and creativity in this area and encourage you to chat with other players for inspiration.
You can handwave a character having all their basic necessities or you can play up the survival aspect as characters wander. If you prefer psychological horror, being lost or trapped and having little control over the surroundings is a strong underpinning theme of the game.
The more a location is used, the more "reoccuring" it becomes for other characters to stumble upon (which is the in-game explanation for people being more likely to use locations listed on the location page as a setting.)
Some characters have purchased canon locations from home, or their own apartments to use as a home base, so there is a developing set of locked or regularly inhabited places. These can be found in the locations list.
is this a sex game? do i have to write out smut?
No. If you and your thread partner want to handwave or fade to black rather than get explicit, for whatever reason, that's cool. We're not going to chase you down and make you describe some orgasming genitalia to stay in the game.
That said, this is a sex-positive game, designed to allow people plenty of room to play around with shipping tropes. There will be sexual content. If you're squeamish about fictional characters getting down and dirty, this really probably isn't the game for you. We expect every player to respect every other player's kinks and ship preferences, as well as abiding by the rules.
my character isn't a normal human! they're a —
So long as they can't break the setting (by reality manipulation, magically teleporting everyone home, for instance, or by being too big to fit through the door) then we are fine with them. However if you’re apping a character with abilities powerful enough to break the setting, or who are physically incompatible with a regular environment, you will need to consider adapting them and there is a section in the application for those changes. The Clock obviously provides an easy way to nerf or humanize your characters to make them playable.
As mentioned in the FAQ question above regarding character desires, we’re here to find a solution that both fits the game and meets your interests as a player; if that isn’t doable, consider the character in question may not be the one for this game.
The Clock will also meet any dietary requirements or similar needs (perhaps chains for a werewolf once a month) however nerfing is at player discretion. If it would be more fun for you to play your Mass Effect alien or Twilight vampire as being turned into a regular human, it's perfectly allowed and you can mention those changes in your application.
Drop us a line if you want to discuss a specific scenario.
i have a question that isn't answered here
Unsurprising, we in no way covered everything. Go ahead and reply to this post with your question. We'll link it, and the answer, here:
• What apps and programs can we make for the devices? And other information about hacking and the OS.
• Does the game have a fourth wall policy?
• Do characters pick their usernames themselves?
• Does the lockbox app support audio files?
• Can characters change their username?
• How far can characters fly in outdoor areas?
• Will the Clock provide illegal drugs?
• Can multiple keys to one location be bought on the AC Rewards page?
• Can I use fan translations as canon?
• Do I have to fill out a form before canon updating?
• Does Clock Box accept mythological OCs?
• Can characters who don't speak English communicate?
• Does the device follow characters?
• Do characters arrive fully healed of old injuries?
• Does rescue ease mental malaise?
• Can the one week rule be one week before acceptance rather than a week before submitting the app?
• What's the status on NPCs?
• Can animals move between locations?
• Are involuntary arrivals cleaned as well as healed?
• Can the device be broken?
• Do the doors change size?
• Should we contact the mods for canon updates with power changes?
If you need to contact the mods with feedback or private questions, or for any other reason, you can PM this account or PP our mod plurk, or alternately send an email to clockgods @ gmail
If you have a suggestion for the game or a future plot, feel free to also use this post! Comments are screened.
something about this makes me angry.
Them's the breaks. If you're looking for a similarly relaxed game we reccomend
eudio, or any other number of the really excellent small, interesting and unique games linked on ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
app_this_plz
Question re: programming apps on the personal devices!
(I am, of course, getting far ahead of myself out of excitement)
PROGRAMMING THE DEVICES
This is a great question. We'd love for the devices to be a virtual playground in the similar way the game itself is — that is, we don't want character coding things that break the setting or intrude on player fun, but are otherwise open to anything characters want to try.
The device itself is a very simple shell on a far more complicated operating system, however it will learn along with the characters and respond well to logical programming languages. Tech inclined characters who want to hack the OS might have to start out in binary to really alter the mainframe to work more like the common UNIX or whatever exists in their world.
The app that allows people to design more apps is made to help total newbies learn so it might be a bit simplistic for Cisco! However ultimately it has the tools to make just about anything possible. With the understanding that mastering the system and designing and coding the app would take a believable amount of time, some suggestions for what could be programmed from easiest to hardest are:
• A calculator.
• A notepad.
• Basic games like text based exploration (Zork) or DOS-style games with simple graphics like pong, brick, snake, minesweeper, flappy clock.
• File sharing.
• Slightly more complicated games with multiplayer capability like racing, various card games, flash style games.
• Snapchat style photo messaging (we have HTML we can provide for this).
• A geolocation service that pings nearby devices to try and work out how far you are from other people (unfortunately the Clock environment shifts too much to map it.)
• An Instagram copy (players can use tumblrs to create their character instagrams).
• A list of usernames on the network (allowing people to check who's still around.)
• Increased security and encryption.
• Complicated games with lots of graphics.
• Hacking and malware.
• Use of the intranet to communicate with the clock itself.
These are just suggestions and we're open to seeing what characters do with the technology! If we see people going too far too fast we might have a word but we're always open to collaboration and will be adding apps to the
Hope this helps,
The Clock Box team.
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Characters may recognize each other from popular canons at player discretion. We would advise anyone worried about it toss up a permission post, but please check with the other player before breaking the fourth wall.
For minor references or items from characters' worlds (DVDs, action figures, etc.) we would advise playing around with knock-offs of canons, such as Admiral USA comics or Galaxy Wars films, even if the canon is not currently in game.
Let us know if you need any further clarification,
The Clock Box team.
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It won't create brand new areas for them (however stumbling upon the perfect area can be bought on the activity rewards page.)
It seems like the general purpose of the setting is to allow characters to stumble upon random places that players can invent as we go along, with specific locations that are duplicates of existing places in other worlds available via AC rewards, but this bit seems to contradict that. I'd love some clarification!
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Our intention with this particular restriction was to make it clear that characters can come across spaces but can't dream them up — an example would be, if Steve for some reason wanted to find a cosy place to take a lady he could stumble upon any number of appropriate or inappropriate places at player discretion, but if he was visualizing a specific room and decor the Clock might only be able to help him find a variation on the theme.
However your general understanding is absolutely correct and we do see that the nuance in this particular rule seems contradictory: the difference is mostly in player desire versus character desire, but our attempt to incentivize with an ooc system blurs that line. We will consider our phrasing and the answer in general and attempt to provide better clarity in our guidelines!
Sincere thanks for your feedback,
The Clock Box team.
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if Steve for some reason wanted to find a cosy place to take a lady
HE'S BUSY, OKAY. GEEZ.
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We are so sorry about the wait on this question!
To wit, yes, characters pick their own usernames as part of the device's introduction to itself. There is no setting to change them (a hacker-type character could probably manage it.)
Thanks for your patience,
The Clock Box team.
for the network comms
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Thanks for your question! While the devices themselves don't come equipped with a music sharing app, as Riley was given an iPod on arrival she is able to upload songs from its library and share them with individuals. We highly encourage the design of new apps as characters develop the interest in them, so if you'd like you could handwave her learning how to create one that would allow sharing across the whole network.
Hope that gives you the info you need!
The Clock Box Team.
ANOTHER DEVICE QUESTION!
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At this time there's no embedded ability to change a character's username, but if Cisco is invested in one that's better fitting he can take the time to hack the system and give himself a new handle that way. Other less technologically proficient characters might be kicking themselves too, so that would make a great subject for a network post or reaching out for new CR.
We're happy to answer any of your device questions! It's exciting to see how much a character like Cisco could add to their functionality.
The Clock Box team.
general setting question!
BUT. since some of the setting can be outdoors--if a character can fly (by means of, say, turning into a small cloud of bats, or perhaps some other method) and they're in an outdoor location, and they take off in an attempt to find the end of their location or just to fly away--what happens to them? do they hit a wall or an "end" to the sky a la The Truman Show, or do they end up on a loop and flying but never getting anywhere, or something else?
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Sorry for the delay in answering your question! The answer is broadly that the choice is yours, as long as it maintains the idea that "areas" are delineated by doors. Within that scope a character (one scattered into a small cloud of bats, for instance) could conceivably fly indefinitely, but they might also encounter a more prosaic concern like hitting atmosphere and needing to come back down.
We hope that gives you enough information to go on! Let us know if we can provide more clarification, details, etc. Thanks for your question.
The Clock Box Team
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The Clock will provide anything that isn't listed as restricted above, so largely this (or any other item that might qualify as legally or ethically debatable) depends on your own desires as a player.
Thanks for your question!
The Clock Box Team
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Keys are effectively 100CP each, however multiple players could buy keys to the same locked location if it was clearly agreed upon by all parties. Otherwise he would have to help them in and out.
-- The Clock Box team.
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(Anonymous) 2016-01-21 09:39 pm (UTC)(link)I don't want to be that first voice crying but why no original characters! but you use the phrasing "at this time" on the app page. Does this mean you do intend to allow original characters eventually?
Thank you.
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We would very much like to allow OCs — putting it off initially was about establishing the game and our app standards, since the app is very relaxed for canon characters and judging OCs can be harder and also more personal for the player.
We are in team discussions about how and when to implement the change, and also plan on discussing it with the playerbase first, given they apped into a game that didn't allow OCs and we don't want to pull that rug out from under them. We'd probably also need to write a new app template and an OC FAQ, and to be transparent, we're not totally sure if all that will be in place by the next app round.
In conclusion: yes, that was our intention with that phrasing, thank you for asking!
-- The Clock Box team.
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Fan translations are perfectly acceptable! As long as monolingual English speakers can check out your canon we are fine with it.
Sorry about the short delay in getting back to you,
-- The Clock Box team.
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Just wanted to confirm some things re: canon updates. Players can update at their discretion (and with courtesy given to canonmates/CR, obviously!), right? Or is there an official canon update form I'm missing?
Thank you!
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Characters may update at their discretion!
-- The team
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The second (actual) question is: would you accept mythology based OCs? By this I mean both mythological figures who don't have much of a known personality, so are often viewed as OCs, and/or completely original characters coming from a world build using mythological structures and figures.
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We wouldn't accept religious mythological figures from a religious text, regardless of religion, as OCs or canon characters. However we would be willing to consider other kinds of mythology (Arthuriana, the Ulster cycle).
Characters based on mythological figures from fictional universes are appable even if they are based on a religious figure (a canon example would be a Hades from Disney's Hercules or the Percy Jackson series, Jesus Christ from Saint Young Men, Lucifer from Supernatural or, say, the Constantine movie, etc.) and this includes OCs from that sort of worldbuild.
It's hard to give a generalized guideline as it would depend strongly on the character and their app. For both canon and original characters we would be looking critically at the application and expect it to be respectful of any real world religion as well as holding it to established app standards, particularly with regards to powers.
Thanks for the heads up about the links, those should be fixed.
-- The Clock Box team.
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sure am not still considering bringing in sailor mars
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We, and we think most of our players, have been assuming a kind of Babel Fish effect thanks to the Clock's desire to facilitate communication. While with intent people can probably still do the thing where they speak a common phrase in another language without any problems, or perhaps even hold a conversation in an alternate language to obscure it's meaning from outsiders, we don't intend for there to be an unintentional language barrier.
--- The Clock Box team.
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A character leaving their device in one area will find it amongst their possessions once they move on to the next. So they do have some leeway in that they're able to leave it behind temporarily, but it's contrary to the spirit of the atmosphere for it to stay where it's left. Thanks for your question!
-- The Clockbox Team
arriving with injuries, new and established.
Is there a rule around whether characters arrive fully healed if they were very injured prior to arrival? Is there anything established with regard to whether characters retain or heal from older disabilities? I'm asking without particular agenda either way.
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Whether or not characters are healed depends on how they arrive, as laid out on the settings page. As a quick recap, Involuntary and Rescued characters are healed but Accidental arrivals are not. We require applicants to specify which they're choosing in the application, and expect if they were healing a long-term disability then it would be covered under "Changes" much like if a vampire character was being defanged. That said, for the sake of full disclosure, we have chosen to decline applicants in the past for their depiction of disability so please be sensitive.
We hope that answers your question somewhat,
-- The Clock Box team.
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Does the rescue arrival also ease mental malaise? Nothing like actual mental illness, but I've got a character who spends a chunk of recent canon possessed by another character, and I'm not interested in playing the possessor. Or could this be considered a change along the lines of nerfing a character using a different arrival method?
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That's fine! Not all rescued arrivals will necessarily share that experience, but if that's your preference as a player the Clock can always be said to move in mysterious ways.
Thanks,
-- The Team
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Since the one week period does pass while applications are open you are welcome to apply for the character. In such a case we only ask if a character that falls under these circumstances is accepted then the player puts up a permissions post so that anyone who wishes to opt out of spoilers can do so.
-- The Clock Box Team
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What is the status on NPCs? Are there other people in these rooms within the Clock? Can Clock-natives, if they do exist, leave those rooms and move between also, or no?
Trying to work out what kind of threads it's ok to plot for! Or maybe amass an NPC army. You never know.
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As per the FAQ answer about what the Clock can and can't do:
"It can't create life or bring people back from the dead. It does seem to have a fair amount of non-sentient life within its bounds, though, from bees to trees to bacteria to elephant colonies."
And as per the
While there may be zombies, poltergeists and predator animals, there is currently no sentient life apart from PCs within the Clock, though it is implied throughout minor setting details that they are not the first ever people to inhabit it.
We hope that clarifies things,
-- The Clock Box team.
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Unless specified in the location description, animals are perfectly capable of moving from room to room if they can fit through the doors. As such, characters keep what they eat.
-- The Clock Box team.
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Thanks!
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There's no hard and fast rule so whichever you'd like is fine. Thanks for asking!
-- The Clock Box Team.
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For example, if it was chucked into a lake, would one find it in their pocket when they left the area?
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That's exactly how it works! The devices rematerialize and regenerate persistently. Thanks for asking!
-- The Clock Box team.
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Great question! Some doors change size... Or are just naturally pretty big. Some don't. Some places have alternate ways in, like Narnia pools or back windows. Characters of unusual size apped in will receive assistance from the Clock, but it doesn't care about non-sentient creatures so Jon will just have to manouver it deftly. His success is up to you.
-- The Clock Box team.
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We've had PMs with similar content in the past just giving us a heads up, but they're not actually required. We trust our players to be sensible and stick to game limitations outlined in the docs but if you want to check what's okay or discuss something (developing telepathy is a big deal for instance and we'd have a bunch of info to give you) you can contact us via email or PM, whatever's comfiest for you.
-- The Clock Box team.